Welding holder for metal pipes and bars and the like



Aug. 7 I 1 w TON w WELDING HOLDER FOR METAL P IPES AND BARS AND THE LIKE 7 Filed April 10, 1943 LEE w. FULL'ETON INVENTOR 3 BY M ATTORNEYS i I v Patented Aug. 7, 1945 This inventioh relates' to means for supporting: the'abutting ends of metal pipes or bars when it is desind'to'; weld theseends. together so as to form a continuous pipe or'bar, 'and'this invention rehave not beehfentirely successful due largely to the fact that {the pipe sections "which are to be io'i'r'ied bif w -1am; are oftenlong and heavy and it is a difficultuhatter to b'rin'g them into perfect axial alinement. Furthermore, even when'thej sections havebeen b'r'oughtintothe proper axial ali'ne'm'ent, a slight jarring of'on'e of the section's; especially'if the section'is long and'the" jarring occurs at the" end remote'f'roin the end to 'he welded; '7 will he suflicientto move "that section slightly out of axial alinement'. Such inadvertent jarringjof one of 'theisec tion prior or during the} welding is very apt to occur esma'cially"fin crowded'working conditions. If the welder 'nfo-j ticesthatthejpipe andse'ction s are no longer ti'ue' aliliement 'hemust then hold up thew'eldmg until the sections have once again been 1 19}? erlyi aflined; and thisresults in los ofltim' and on enience. I f the'welder do snot happen to detect" the "i'ac't that' the sections are no "longer. in true alinemei'it and proceeds withv 17116 welding, then'the're isieven greaterlwaste and loss of time; since: thewelded pipe is then unsatisfactory.

[One of the objects of thisinventionis to'pfrovide a welding holder particularly adapted for se,cur ing' abutting ends of metal'pipjes, orfmetalbars together in axial alin ment'with each other which will insure the maintenance of the proper alineexpensive to manufacture;

or cumbersome; and which will 11 V 2,381,584 w I Q 5 j HOLDER/FOR METAL PIPES'AND' 'BARSANDTHE'LIKKi; -i

7 F 'Lee W. Full eton,Poitlan( l Application April'10, 1943, Serial Nth-482,660 eolai s. (Cl. 1 13 1 02) easily adapted for use with pipes of different sizes ordiameters. z-J

A furth r object of this inventionis to provide a holder which; while clamping the pipe sections firmly in position,- will not prevent or interfere with the welding of the pipe ends together.

fA'still -furtherobject is to provide a welding holder which will meet the above requirements -and objec'tsbutwhiehwill riot-be unduly heavy not be diflicult or These and other'objects have been able to obtain by making Tmy welding. holder in such form tliaat-it'. will extendfor a distance over the ends of thetwo section'sto be welded; by providing adjustable clamping means on the holders for 'firmly' securing each pipe section to the hold-1 er; by arranging for suitable spacing between the holder and the" end portions" of the 'pipe sectionstobe welded, and ingeneral, by making my hold-- er inth'inanriei hereinafter to be briefly do scribed.

In' thefollowing descriptionreference is made to the accompanying drawing'in which:

er showing two pipe sections secured therein preparatoryto having their abutting ends welded together? v. i I 3 Big. 2 is'a'seetionon me 2 4 neg-1; I f "Fig? is-a' similansection drawn to a larger scale but showing how a clamping dog may be nientbfi thegtwo s ections'as long asthe, holder a holder for abutting pipe sections which other object of this invention' is" to bi qv'ide semi-'cylindrical end member land H. A pair of diametrically opposite, longitudinally extend-- used in the cla ping of the pipe sections in the holder; 7 I v Fig. dis a sectional view similarto Figs'. 2 and 3' but showing the bottomof thefholder madevshaped instead of semi-cylindrical;"and also i1- lustrating'*how different sizes 01' pipescan' be clampedihthe holder; "Fig. '5 isa sectional View of the same holder illustratedih'Fi-g; 4 but showing'the addition of a set screw 'in the top ofo ne of the wedge holding ears of each 'pair' to'be used in com'u-nction with the wedge for clamping the pipe firmly in thehol'de'rjand ff 'Fig. Sis an inverted perspective view of annualified'form ofmy holder Referring first to'liigsi l and 2, my holder, as shown in these figures, comprises anelongated semi cyl ind-rical body havinga cut-out, rectan' gularly shaped central portion leaving a pair of ins flanged edges I 2 extend along the top of the holder. JThese flanged edges are narrowed atthecut'eout portion" so as to form integral- -paral1el' Fig. 1 is a perspective. view'of my welding hold spaced bars l3 which will be slightly spaced from the surface of the pipe sections I8 and 19, as

shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

Each of the end members In and I I has a pair of parallel ears l4 and [5. The ears l4 and I5 have openings l6 and I1 respectively and the ears of each pair are arranged with their openings l6 and l! in transverse alinement and thus are adapted to? have a, clampingwedge 20 inserted therethrough;

When the two pipe sections which are to be welded together in axial alinement are placed in abutting relation with each section located in one of the end members I!) and II of the holder,*.

wedges 20 are then driven in place between the transversely alined openings l6 and llofeach pair of ears. 7 to clamp the corresponding pipe section firmly in place in the semi-cylindrical elongated groove of theteedmemb l i When my welding holder is made inithis form theinternal diameter of the elongated semi-cylindrical groove should be approximately, the same as the external diameter of the pipe, .I have found that a singlepair of ears with the wedgeinserted in ,them is ordinarily sufficient to hold thepipe section firmly in. theend' member, although duplicate pair of cars could be provided.on .each endmember if desired.

A' very important feature of this welding holder is the fact that the integral parallel bars Htlinto. which the; flanges arefiormed at the cut-out portion are. spaced from the exterior surfaces of the pipe sections 18 .and I9. This spac-i ing o fthe-connecting bars 13 from thepipe surfaces; enables the welding to be completed entirelyaround the abutting pipe ends before the holder. is removed. Also this spacing accommodates; different typesof welded.,joining. Thus the, abutting pipe ends may. be. secured av slight distance apart, as indicated at 2| in Fig. 1,. so as toleave anchanneltobe vfilled up the weld; or, when the pi e sections'are being set in place, a sleeve (such asthat indicated by the broken line.2 2 in Eig. 1) may be slid over the ends of thelpipes andthe welding then performed at the ends of the sleeve securing the corresponding pipe sections thereto. The spacing oj the connecting bars I, 3 provides ample clearance, for suchasleeve 22., l u H V i .In stead,of clamping the pipe sections inlthe end members with the holder by means of the wedges Z0. alone, as shown in Figs. 1 and- 2, a am in dog H (See i 3 may elp d in. conjunction with each wedge. The clamping, dog 2 9. shown in Fig. 3, has. a plurality of teeth 30 which engage the outer surfaces of thepipe to be clampedand the dog 29 also has a flattened top edge ,3; l arrang ed to beengaged by the side of the, wedge 20. Such a clamping dog enables a larger surface area of the pipe to be engaged by the, clamp, and the stronger hold obtained on the pipe thereby may be desirable in some cases, particularly, ifthe external diameter of the pipe should be somewhat less thanthatconternplated for usein the holder. Obviously clamping dogs and, clamping means other than that illustrated could be'substituted in my holder, but 1 consider the wedge clamp satisfactory and desirable particularly 'because'of its simplicity and the speed and easewith which it can be 'set and released.

Intheform in which I have shown my welding As apparent, each; wedge will actnecessarily restricted for use with pipes (or bars) having an external diameter approximately the same as the internal diameter of the grooves. In Fig. 4 however I show how my holder can be formed with a V-shaped groove in each end member in place of the semi-cylindrical groove. While the V-shaped groove does not afford a contact area as extensive as asemi-cylindrical groove (as will be apparent by comparison of Figs. 2 and 4), I have found that the V-shaped groove nevertheless will provide sufficiently strong hold and grip under ordinary conditions. Furthermore, the V-shape'd groove has the advantage of accommodating pipes of difierent sizes.

Thus in Fig. ,4 I show how the holder in this form can be used with a pipe IQ of smaller diing to be performed about the entire circumference without interference, u I

In Fig. 5 a set screw 35 is shown added tothe ear 14 of each pair. Such a set screw enables the pressure of the wedge 20 against the pipe l9 to be increased, if desired, when the wedge is inplace without driving the wedge any. further through the ears. Ordinarily] however the use, of the Wedge alone will be found'sufficient.

While it is generallypreferableiwhenjoining abuttingpipe. endsby means: of welding, to complete. the welding around the entire circumference of the joint during the initial welding operation, and while my holder, when made in the forms which I have described, enables this to be done without removing or even changing the position ofthe holder, nevertheless in some cases it maybe desired, as a preliminary operation, merely to .tack? weld theQabuttin g ends of the pipe sections and then'co'mplete the welding later' when the holder has been removed. For such tack welding of pipe ends (or bars) the modified and simplified form of my holder which is shown (in invertedposition) in. Fig. 6 wi1l suffice. My

holder in Fig s. 1 and 2 withthe end members shaped soas. to provide an elongated semi-cylinholder in this form comprises aisingle elongated semi-cylindricalbody 25 provided with clamping ears l4 and 'l5 at each end and having a window or cut out portion] 26 substantially at the center. The marginal body portions 21 which border the opposite'sides of the'window'or cutout portion 26 are of sufiicient size and strength to enable the holder to retain the necessary rigidity. Although these marginalportions 21 preventanyjwelding being done'at those placesso' long. as the holder remains in position, nevertheless the ftackf weldingcan be done in the'window'openingand on the opposite side. Anysu'ch tack welding will be suflicient ordinarily to hold the'pipe sections securely together pending the subsequent completion of the joint. InfFig."fi'duplicatepairs of cars are shown at each endo' fjtheholder, but a single pair at each end'would generallysufiice. Similar duplicate pairs of ,wedge holding" ears could be substituted for-the single pair'of each of the end members of'the holder of Fig' 1.

It is not my intention to restrict the end members in my holder to any, particular size orshape, or tolimit my invention to anyspecial clamping means. Various modifications-"might easily be made is the forms of the holder which I have vofmy invention.

illustrated, without departing from the principle 7 While I have described my holder in its difier:

ent forms as being used in welding, and its most important use willbe in this connection, nevertheless my holder can also serveto hold adjoining pipe ends, or rods, in axial alinement for any other purpose, either temporarily or permanently;

and'can be used connection with temporary joining means between the adjoining" pipe ends instead of the permanent welding.

I claim:v I l. A welding holder of the character described for supporting a pair of pipesand the like in axial alinement during the Welding operation, said holder comprisingan elongated body having a longitudinal groove for accommodating said pipes,

other and causing said flanges at said cut-out section to be reduced to'parallel'bars spaced from,

thesurface of the pipes, whereby to permit the welding to be performed entirely around the pipes at said cut-out section, a pair of cars near each end of said elongated body extending upwardly from the top of said body, the ears of each pair located on Opposite sides of said groove respectively and in transverse alinement with each other, and a wedgemember adapted to extend transversely through each pair of ears for clamping the pipes in position in the holder.

2. A welding holder of the character described for supporting a pair of pipes and the like in axial alinement during the welding operation, said holder comprising an elongated bodyhaving a longitudinal semi-cylindrical groove for accommodating said pipes, the diameter of said groove corresponding approximately to the diameter of the outside surface of said pipes, a pair of flanges extending outwardly along the top of said holder on opposite sides ofsaid groove and lying in a plane parallel tothe common axis of said pipes when said pipes are properly positioned, a rectangularly-shaped cut-out section-in the center of said elongated bodyextending from one flange to the other and causing said flangesat said cutout section to be reduced to parallel bars spaced from the surface of the pipes, whereby to permit the welding to-be performed entirelyaround the pipes at said cut-out section, a pair of ears near each end'of said elongated body extending up wardly from the top of said body, the ears of each 7 pair located on opposite sides of said groove respectively and in transverse alinement with each other, and a wedge member adapted to extend transversely througheach pair of ears for clamping the pipes in position in the holder.

Llilh W. FULLETON. 

